A Pinoy Family’s Tragedy Brings the Filipino Community Together

It has been a week since a random home invasion took the life of an innocent teenager. 17-year-old Jaime Adao was with his grandmother when someone broke in to their house at north-central Winnipeg. His parents were out during the time.

The incident rocked not just the Pinoy Community in Winnipeg. Every parent, every household, everyone mourned and supported the Adao family. I have been contemplating to write or not to write about this because it can be too much and emotional to do so.

However, I ended up writing because I just can’t imagine that a kid like Jaime had to die like that. I’ve been to their bakery a couple of times and I had a chance to get to know the family a little bit.

A tragedy like this is not something foreign as this is not the first time that has had the Pinoy community shaken. Just last year, Manong Eduardo Balaquit went missing and his sudden disappearance has made the community question the safety of the neighbourhoods. I personally have questioned this myself. Are we still safe in this place we call home?

Community members have aired out their sentiments online.

Alex Canlapan (FB post)

“About time to review the laws, Tax payers and law abiding citizen must be PROTECTED, not the criminals.”

– I agree with increasing security in the streets but I still say no to violence and guns.

Elain Sauler-Tumbokon (FB Post)

“Wake up Winnipeg!”

– The City of Winnipeg really need to ramp up their efforts in the investigation because we need #Justice4Jimboy.

Leila Castro (FB post)

“He is just a child, just like any of our children. He was inside his house, a place of safety. But his house was forced open and he was killed in violence.”

– The leader of 204 Neighborhood watch has organized a vigil for Jaime Adao. A lot has expressed their sympathy and we really do feel for the Adao family.

With this tragedy bringing issue to light, the Winnipeg Police has been showing efforts to try and solve these issues one at a time. This really restores my faith in the system. To be honest, I was still under the same impression of how the Philippine system does the process and we all know how most of their cases don’t pan out.

Now, all we can do is wait for the investigations to conclude so we can give justice to Jaime’s death and give Mr. and Mrs. Adao their closure. They called their son a hero during Jaime’s memorial because he saved her grandmother. It was so heart warming and tear jerking that I simply wish and pray for them.

In behalf of the Adao’s family, a GoFundMe campaign has been set up to help raise funds for the memorial. Also, since Jimboy has so much love and passion for baking, some of the funds will be used to organize a baking class in Jimboy’s memory. If anyone wants to donate, click here.